Side Chick

Chapter 2

McKinley's POV

My mom, my dad, and I all got off the plane first. I had an older sister and brother, but they both are in college. As we waited, I saw a man strumming a guitar, and I put $20 in his guitar case. I asked him if he could play Let Her Go, by Passenger. He nodded, and I asked if he had a microphone. He grabbed the one next to him, have it to me, and started strumming. I pulled the microphone up to my soft lips and started singing.

"Well, you only need the light when it's burning low,

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow,

Only know you loved him till you let him go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low,

Only hate the road when you're missing home,

Only know you loved him till you let him go...

And you let him go."

I stopped there, thanking the man, and grabbing my suitcase. My parents motioned for me to get over there, but I was stopped by a man who looked suspiciously like Alfred from Batman. I was a little surprised my parents hadn't scolded me for singing in public, delaying them, and "making a scene" as they liked to call it. Though, I was more surprised by "Alfred."

But where is the Batmobile? My nerdy brain thought as I looked around for the famous car.

"You have a great voice, ya know," his deep Mississippi voice filling the silence.

Nope! Definitely not Alfred!

"Thanks? I'm sorry, I have to get going," I nodded towards my parental units.

"Well, before you leave, think about coming to this school. You have talent miss..."

"Dallas, McKinley Dallas," I inwardly facepalm myself as I walked away.

James Bond, really? What was I thinking? Truth be told, I wasn't. I honestly was just happy. I had a fresh start. People knew I could sing. And life was going great. At least, before Monday. Monday was the first day of school. The first day at a school where all the girls looked like Taylor Swift and all the guys looked like Dylan O'Brien. 

But in my opinion, Grant Gustin and Tom Holland are cuter. Just saying! I guess I really do have a thing for nerds-wait, are they, nerds? I mean, is being a nerd even a thing? Well, Tom was in a Marvel movie, but, as a nerd. So does he count? I guess it didn't matter, as I dismissed the thought. 

As you can see in my "thought bubble" I'm just confusing myself. But as I flipped on my bed in a room full of boxes, I dreamt about how I could become the next youngest artist. And I may have been jerked out of my plan to stay in hiding, but I was happy. Happy for me, happy for my parents, and surprisingly happy for my two friends-no, not really. I don't want to lie. It had been the first time since this whole thing that I went to bed happy. It felt wonderful.